UPSC 1998 Prelims – all questions

Match List I with List II

and select the correct answer using the codes given below the lists:

List I I. Potassium bromide II. Potassium nitrate III. Potassium sulphate IV. Mono-potassium tartrate

List II A. Fertiliser B. Photography C. Bakery D. Gunpowder

Codes:

Which one of the following elements is essential for the construction of nuclear reactors?

Consider the following statements regarding asteroids: I. Asteroids are rocky debris of varying sizes orbiting the Sun. II. Most of the asteroids are small but some have diameter as large as 1000 km. III. The orbit of asteroids lies between the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn. Of these statements:

Consider the following statements: Coke is one of the materials of the charge added to blast furnace for the production of steel/iron. Its function is to I. Act as a reducing agent. II. Remove silica associated with the iron ore. III. Function as fuel, to supply heat. IV. Act as an oxidizing agent. Of these statements:

Which one of the following metals does not form amalgams?

A fuse is used in main electric supply as a safety device.

Which one of the following statements about the fuse is correct?

The correct sequence of different layers of the atmosphere from the surface of the Earth upwards is

Consumption of fish is considered to be healthy when compared to flesh of other animals because fish contains

Match List I with List II

and select the correct answer using the codes given below the lists:

List I (Disease) I. Malaria II. Poliomyelitis III. Tuberculosis IV. Ringworm

List II (Organism) A. Fungi B. Bacteria C. Virus D. Protozoan

Codes:

Haemophilia is a genetic disorder which leads to

Consider the following statements about acetylene: I. It is used in welding industry. II. It is raw material for preparing plastics. III. It is easily obtained by mixing silicon carbide and water. Of these statements:

A ball is dropped from the top of a high building with a constant acceleration of 9.8 m/s². What will be its velocity after 3 seconds?

Match List I with List II

and select the correct answer by using the codes given below the lists:

List I (Special Characteristic) I. Farthest planet from the Sun II. Largest planet of the solar system III. Planet second from the Sun in the solar system IV. Planet nearest to the Sun

List II (Name of Planet) A) Mercury

B) Venus

C) Jupiter

D) Pluto

E) Saturn

Which one of the following types of micro-organisms is most widely used in industries?

Match the names of outstanding Indian scientists given in List I with the area of their specialised work given in List II and select the correct answer using the codes given below the lists:

List I I. Dr. Raja Ramanna II. Dr. M. S. Swaminathan III. Prof. U. R. Rao IV. Prof. Meghnad Saha

List II A) Plant Chemistry B) Nuclear Physics E) Agricultural sciences

C) Thermodynamics and astrophysics

Match List I with List II

and select the correct answer using the codes given below the lists:

List I I. Fruit II. Seed III. Wood IV. Starch

List II A) Ovule

B) Leaf

C) Stem

D) Ovary

Match List I with List II

and select the correct answer using the codes given below the lists:

List I I. Theory of Mutation II. Theory of Evolution III. One-gene-one-enzyme hypothesis IV. Operon concept

List II A) Beadle and Tatum

B) Jacob and Monod

C) Darwin

D) De Vries

A tree species in Mauritius failed to reproduce because of the extinction of a fruit-eating bird.

Which one of the following was that bird?

Which one of the following statements regarding starch and cellulose is NOT correct?

Ergotism is due to consumption of

The complete conversion of glucose in the presence of oxygen into carbon dioxide and water with release of energy is called

The major chemical compound found in human kidney stones is

One Astronomical Unit is the average distance between

Match List I with List II

and select the correct answer using the codes given below the lists:

List I I. Blue vitriol II. Epsom salt III. Baking soda IV. Caustic soda

List II A) Sodium bicarbonate

B) Sodium hydroxide

C) Magnesium sulphate

Assertion (A): Formic acid is a stronger acid than acetic acid.

Reason (R): Formic acid is an organic acid.

Assertion (A): The temperature of a metal wire rises when an electric current is passed through it.

Reason (R): Collision of metal atoms with each other releases heat energy.

Assertion (A): Phenyl is used as a household germicide.

Reason (R): Phenyl is a phenol derivative and phenol is an effective germicide.

Assertion (A): Sodium metal is stored under kerosene.

Reason (R): Metallic sodium melts when exposed to air.

The table below indicates the performance of India in rice and wheat production from 1950-51 to 1995-96.

Which of the following conclusions arrived at from the above table would be valid? I. Record production of rice as well as wheat has been in 1994-95. II. The ratio of wheat to rice production seems to have steadily increased over 16 years. III. Wheat has not been popular among the Indian population before 1980. IV. India became self-sufficient in rice and wheat only after 1990.

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

LMNOP is a semi-circle with centre at R and diameter LP; LSR and RQP are also semi-circles with centres at T and U and diameters LR = RP = 1⁄2 LP. The ratio of perimeters of LMNOP and LSRQP is

A man purchases two clocks A and B at a total cost of Rs 650. He sells A with 20% profit and B at a loss of 25% and gets the same selling price for both the clocks. What are the purchasing prices of A and B respectively?

If 15 pumps of equal capacity can fill a tank in 7 days, then how many extra pumps will be required to fill the tank in 5 days?

Out of the three annual examinations, each with a total of 500 marks, a student secured average marks of 45 % and 55 % in the first and second annual examinations. To have an overall average of 60 %, how many marks does the student need to secure in the third annual examination?

Which one of the following satisfies the relationship D d a : a D D :: R r b : ?

A square pond has 2 m sides and is 1 m deep. If it is to be enlarged, the depth remaining the same, into a circular pond with the diagonal of the square as diameter as shown in the figure, then what would be the volume of earth to be removed?

One local and another express train were proceeding in the same direction on parallel tracks at 29 km/hour and 65 km/hour respectively. The driver of the former noticed that it took exactly 16 seconds for the faster train to pass by him. What is the length of the faster train?

A, B, C, D, E and F, not necessarily in that order, are sitting on six chairs regularly placed around a round table. It is observed that A is between D and F, C is opposite D, and D and E are not on neighbouring chairs.

Which one of the following pairs must be sitting on neighbouring chairs?

If in a certain code SAND is VDQG and BIRD is ELUG, then what is the code for LOVE?

In a family, a couple has a son and a daughter. The age of the father is three times that of his daughter and the age of the son is half of his mother. The wife is nine years younger to her husband and the brother is seven years older than his sister. What is the age of the mother?

The missing fraction in the series given below is:

There are 50 students admitted to a nursery class. Some students can speak only English and some can speak only Hindi. Ten students can speak both English and Hindi. If the number of students who can speak English is 21, then how many students can speak only Hindi and how many can speak only English?

An accurate clock shows the time as 3 : 00. After the hour hand has moved 135°, the time would be

The current price index (base 1960) is nearly 330. This means that

In the set of figures (I) to (IV), some parts are shown to change their position in a regular direction. Following the same sequence, which one of the following will appear at the fifth stage?

Examine the following statements:

I. All members of Mohan’s family are honest. II. Some members of Mohan’s family are not employed. III. Some employed persons are not honest. IV. Some honest persons are not employed.

Which of the following inferences can be drawn from the above statements?

In a dinner party both fish and meat were served. Some took only fish and some only meat. There were some vegetarians who did not accept either. The rest accepted both fish and meat.

Which one of the following logic diagrams correctly reflects the above situation?

A, B, C, D, E, F and G are members of a family consisting of 4 adults and 3 children, two of whom, F and G, are girls. A and D are brothers and A is a doctor. E is an engineer married to one of the brothers and has two children. B is married to D and G is their child. Who is C?